Flora of North America species comparison

(10)25-150 cm, erect or decumbent, branching, sometimes rooting at the lower nodes;

nodes 3-6.

20-60 cm, glabrous, decumbent, rooting and branching from the lower nodes, geniculate above.

keeled, basal sheaths usually with papillose-based hairs, rarely glabrous;

ligules 0.3-1.5 mm;

blades 2-18 cm long, 1-6 mm wide, flat or involute, glabrous, scabrous, or pilose.

glabrous or with long hairs near the base;

ligules 0.8-2.5 mm;

blades 2-13.5 cm long, 1.5-2.5 mm wide, glabrous on both surfaces or the adaxial surface with a few long hairs near the base.

with 2-7 spikelike primary branches, these digitate or the rachises to 1 cm;

longest primary branches 20-25 cm, axes triquetrous, not winged, with spikelets in unequally pedicellate groups of 3(-5) on the basal ½ (J.

with 3-8 spikelike primary branches, these digitate or with rachises to 2 cm long;

lower panicle nodes with hairs at least 0.4 mm;

primary branches 4-15.5(20) cm long, 0.4-0.8 mm wide, axes wing-margined, wings more than 1/2 as wide as the midribs, proximal portions of the branches often with scattered 1-4 mm hairs, bearing spikelets in unequally pedicellate pairs on the lower and middle portions of the branches;

secondary branches absent;

pedicels not adnate to the branches.

1.3-2.8 mm.

homomorphic, 1.7-2.8 mm long, 0.5-0.8 mm wide.

absent or to 0.1 mm;

upper glumes 1-2 mm long, from 3/4 to almost as long as the spikelets, almost glabrous or sparsely to densely pubescent with clavate to capitate hairs (use 20x magnification), glume apices rounded;

lower lemmas equaling the spikelets, glabrous or glandular-pubescent, 5-7-veined, veins unequally spaced, outer 3 veins on each side closer to each other than the midvein is to the inner lateral veins;

upper lemmas 1.3-2 mm, apiculate, dark brown at maturity;

anthers 0.3-0.6 mm.

absent or to 0.2 mm;

upper glumes 1-2.2 mm, 0.4-0.8 times as long as the spikelets;

lower lemmas about as long as the spikelets, 7-veined, veins smooth, lateral veins usually equally spaced, sometimes the inner lateral veins more distant from the other 2, intercostal regions adjacent to the midveins glabrous, those between the lateral veins with 0.5-1 mm hairs, hairs initially appressed, sometimes strongly divergent at maturity;

upper lemmas yellow to gray when immature, becoming brown at maturity;

anthers 0.3-0.6 mm.

, pers.

.).

= 36, 54.

= unknown.